is a Japanese

web manga Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...

series illustrated and written by Yukiwo that has been digitally serialized in three different magazines, since June 2008, and the

manga Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...

is still ongoing. Ranko and Hikaru, the main characters and sisters in ''Musashino-sen no Shimai'', are voiced in the "+Voice" versions of the manga. The story focuses on the everyday life of the two unemployed sisters living in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

who love Lolita fashion. A live-action film based on the series has been released.

Plot

Two beautiful sisters, Ranko and Hikaru Midorikawa, live in a high-end apartment in

, and both love Lolita fashion. They live carefree and worry-free lives, as they are NEET. Often the sisters will go to the Akihabara and Shibuya shopping districts to shop for various garments, and converse with people. The sisters are unemployed because Ranko made a fortune off the financial market, and they no longer need jobs. Hikaru takes care of household duties, whilst Ranko surfs the internet and plays games. One day, Hikaru decides that she and Ranko should no longer be living this kind of lifestyle, and applies herself for a job, a waitress at a maid café. Naturally, Ranko is worried about Hikaru and joins her at the maid café at a daily basis.

Characters

Main characters

; :''Voiced by:'' Mai Goto (+Voice) :Ranko, or otherwise known as "Ran", is the older of the two sisters, but the shortest. She is 24 years old, but has a somewhat childish, innocent appearance. Like her younger sister Hikaru, Ranko loves anything

Lolita ''Lolita'' is a 1955 novel written by Russian-American novelist Vladimir Nabokov. The novel is notable for its controversial subject: the protagonist and unreliable narrator, a middle-aged literature professor under the pseudonym Humbert Humber ...

and dresses in that fashion. She loves to go on

online chat room The term chat room, or chatroom (and sometimes group chat; abbreviated as GC), is primarily used to describe any form of synchronous conferencing, occasionally even asynchronous conferencing. The term can thus mean any technology, ranging from ...

gamble Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of value ("the stakes") on a random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy are discounted. Gambling thus requires three elem ...

, and play

video games Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device to gener ...

. Other notable traits of Ranko include her preference for fatty foods, such as

ramen is a Japanese dish, Japanese noodle dish. It consists of served in a broth; common flavors are soy sauce and miso, with typical toppings including , nori (dried seaweed), menma (bamboo shoots), and scallions. Ramen has its roots in Chinese ...

. Sometimes she will wake up at midnight and eat curry. Thanks to her money making off the financial market, she and Hikaru can live in luxury for the rest of their lives, and unlike Hikaru, Ranko is happy with that. ; :''Voiced by:'' Rena Maeda (+Voice) :Hikaru, or otherwise known as "Pandora", is the younger of the two sisters, and also the tallest. She is four years younger than her older sister Ranko, being 20 years old, but may as well be the oldest, as she is more down to earth and caring than her sister, she is also better at household duties. Personality wise, Hikaru and Ranko are very different, except their love for

clothing. Hikaru is

socially inept A social skill is any competence facilitating interaction and communication with others where social rules and relations are created, communicated, and changed in verbal and nonverbal ways. The process of learning these skills is called social ...

, and worries a great deal. After her sister makes a fortune, Hikaru starts to work at a maid cafe despite the fact she could simply stay at home, or go shopping. Hikaru has a liking for yaoi manga.

Media

Manga

Yukiwo's ''Musashino-sen no Shimai'' first began to be serialized on

Flex Comix is a Japanese company specializing in the sale of manga magazines and goods related to the anime and manga industry in Japan. Flex Comix is affiliated with Asian Groove and Soft Bank BB, forming the Movida Holdings joint-investment company. The ...

's ''FlexComix Blood'' web magazine, in December 2007. Then, in June 2008, the

transitioned to the ''FlexComix Next'' web magazine. From October 2012 onward, ''Musashino-sen no Shimai'' was digitally serialized in G-Mode's ''Comic Meteor'' magazine. So far, five

tankōbon is the Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or cultur ...

volumes have been released between July 2009 and May 2012. "+Voice" versions of the manga were published, which includes the voices of two main characters Ranko and Hikaru, who are voiced by Mai Goto and Rena Maeda, respectively.

Film

A live-action film for ''Musashino-sen no Shimai'' was first announced on

's official website in August 2010. Screenplay was written and directed by Junichi Yamamoto, and the film was released by Is.Field as a DVD on November 17, 2012. Music in the film was provided by AOI, and the theme song, , was sung by Yumi Matsuzawa. On August 23, 2012, the trailer was published on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

Cast

*Ranko Midorikawa -

Natsuki Katō is a Japanese actress, singer and former fashion model, regularly appearing on television in various roles. Career In November 2010, Akita Prefecture chose her as one of the two official PR-Ambassadors, along with Nozomi Sasaki, with the purp ...

*Hikaru Midorikawa - Sayaka Nakaya *Eiyu Ryo - Chisato Nakata *Hitoshi Munakata - Yuki Hiyori *Shizuru Munakata - Ayaka Komatsu *Takahiro Todo - Mitsuru Karahashi *Rin Kono - Yu Toa *Cop - Ujigami Ichiban *Nyanpu sama -

Koriki Choshu (born , February 5, 1972 in the city of Nishi-Tokyo, Tokyo) is a Japanese comedian. He is most famous for his act in which he mocks a famous Japanese professional wrestler Riki Choshu due to his resemblance. ''Koriki'' is a wordplay on Riki's ...

*Chiba Shigeru - Iwami Yoshimasa *Hiro Ozaki - Fujii Paige *Nancy - Katsunobu *Ken -

Kyousuke Hamao is a Japanese former actor, singer, and model. Hamao debuted as an actor in the role of Eiji Kikumaru in '' Musical: The Prince of Tennis'' from 2007 to 2009. He has since then appeared in multiple film and television projects, such as Takumi H ...

*Montesquieu President - Hitoshi Ozawa

References

External links

''Musashino-sen no Shimai''
at Comic Meteor * {{in lang, ja Comic Meteor manga FlexComix Blood and FlexComix Next manga Japanese webcomics Live-action films based on manga Manga adapted into films Seinen manga Webcomics in print Japanese drama films